Blue
by Crystalline Amore
Summary: "I am merely a common thief. You on the other hand are a merciless pirate. Why would you want me?" She can steal anything, and all that remained was a blue flower. Never once was she caught, and when seen she leaves with a Cheshire grin. One day, she steals from a well-respected pirate, who wants nothing more than for her to join his crew. Who is this pirate, and what does he want?
1. Chapter 1

**_A/N: Hey everyone, I'm so sorry for not updating in a while, but there are a few things that I want to change with the story. A brilliant reader gave me a few ideas, some of which I will input into the story. That person is Guest666-69, so if you're reading this, thank you so much!!! Antyway, here is the updated version of the story, but no worries, later on in the story you'll see the familiar content reappear. Review, Follow, Favorite, Share!!!_**

 **Chapter 1:**

' _Damn_ is it hot." She thought, wiping the sweat from her brow.

From on top of the building she currently called home, she nailed a hammer into the planks of wood covering a hole in the roof. It called for rain, and although she had no problem with water, she doubted her furniture and appliances would agree with her. Just as she was about to finish, she saw a small boat float into her makeshift dock. The side of the island that she resided on was rarely visited. This was due to the strong currents that usually pushed larger ships into the rocks, but then again, this man's boat was very small.

 _'What the hell?'_ she asked, staring at the man's hat, _'That thing is an abomination to headwear, but.."_ She glanced back down at the man who was tying upon his boat, _"...it strangely suits him."_

Suddenly, this mysterious man looked up at her, a wide smile on his face as he waved at her. It startled her for a minute. Usually people tend to ignore her, but this strange man was waving at her. Slowly, she raisers her hand and waved back, sending him a guarded half smile. The man then made his way over to her.

 _'Oh no, this strange being is coming over here,"_ She thought in a panic.

A brilliant idea then appeared to her. She kicked down the ladder that she used to climb up, and smiled smugly at the stranger.

 _Now_ he can't get up. she thought.

"Hey, are you okay?" the man called.

From a closer distance, she'd could see that although the man was handsome, he had boyish features, especially when he smiled. What caught her attention most was his abs. Most of the men on this island were on the thicker side, and the ones that were fit didn't shamelessly display their bodies for everyone to see.

"I'm fine." She states stubbornly.

"Are you sure," He asked before smirking, "How are you gonna get down?"

 _'Crap I hadn't thought that one through._ She thought, before galring at the sun, 'This damn sun and heat must really be getting to me.'

Before she even realised it, the boy jumped onto the roof, placing himself in front of her. As she tried to catch her breath, he studied the work she was doing.

"Is this your work?" he asked.

She puffed out her chest, feeling proud that she did it all by herself and replies, "Yes" with a smug grin.

The man shook his head, "This is the worst patching I've ever seen." He turned to look at her once more, "You do realise that the shingles come _after_ the wood and that you shouldn't nail diagonally, right."

"Then how are they supposed to stick together?" She pouted.

The man laughs before combing a hand through his hair, "I can fix it for you."

She raised a delicate eyebrow at that.

"What's the catch? I don't even know your name."

"I'm Ace, and there is not catch."

 _'No catch?'_ she asked. From observing his makeshift boat, she could see a raggedy flag. She automatically knew that he was a pirate. Why else would he have a god awful Jolly Roger? From previous experiences, she has learnt not to trust pirates, but then again, those who really knew her would say the same thing about her.

"It you're gonna fix my roof, then I'm going to allow you to stay here while you're on the island." She stated firmly, "But no funny business Mr. Pirate."

"I said my name was Ace."

"I know."

With that, she walked to the edge of the room and jumped off, much to Ace's alarm. His eyes were wide as he scattered over to where the mysterious girl had just jumped off. He let out a breath of relief when he saw that she was alright. Just as she was about to walk into her house again, he called out to her.

"You never told me your name."

"I know." came her smart reply.

Laughing to himself , Ace went back to mending what the girl had tried to do to fix her roof.

*

*

*

As Ace placed the last shingle onto the roof, he wiped the sweat trickling down his forehead. He jumped down from the roof and looked around. There was nothing but trees surrounding the home of the mysterious girl.

 _'Is she thew only person that lives here?'_ he wondered to himself before entering the girl's house.

The minute he entered, he smelled like food cooking on the stove. It smelled like a soup of some sort, and causes his stomach to growl. He followed the scent into a reasonable sized kitchen with black marble countertops. The girl had her back towards him as she learned over a stove.

"So are you going to stand there and stare at me?" she asked, startling him a bit.

 _'How did she...'_ He wondered.

The girl turned around, amethyst colored hair flailing around as she did so. Her brows furrowed as she stared at him in utter disgust, and Ace felt a feeling of dread in the pit of his stomach.

"Ew, go take a shower you sweaty thing." She stated, "You're stinking up the whole place."

A relieved breath that he didn't know he was holding was released. Ace trailed behind the girl as she led him down the hallways of her home, which was surprisingly bigger than he originally thought it was. She opened the bathroom door for him, and passed him a towel.

"I'll wait for you to undress so that I can wash your clothes." She stated, closing the door.

The bathroom was clean and quaint. On the counter underneath her medicine cabinet, curlers, oils, a blow dryer and other hair products littered the granite counter. He then began to undress, handing the girl a basket with his dirty clothes.

"I'll have them dried and washed in a second."

When he was done with his shower, Ace found his clean clothes in the basket sitting on top of the closed toilet.

 _'When and how did she even get in here without me noticing or hearing the door open.'_ he wondered.

*

*

*

 _'This man is so strange,'_ she thought as she watched the raven haired man sleep. One minute they were eating supper, the other he was faced down on the tabletop, snoozing away. _'Are all men like this nowadays?'_

She shook the thought from her head and placed a sticky note on the table next to the sleeping Ace's head. Pulling the hood of her cloak up, she jumped onto a tree, dashing from brach to branch at the speed of light. She could see it. Her destination was very close. The houses before her were tall, and made out of lavish, expensive materials. She jumped down through an opened window of one, landing softly next to the bed off a sleeping man. He was fat and honestly one of the ugliest beings she had ever seen, and there were a lot of them in this town. What made him exceptionally ugly was the two women that slept next to him, both beautiful. This was the main problem she had with this town. The women were gold digging whores, and the men were polygamous bastards. She swiped their jewelry, money, or anything she could fit onto her sack that was of value. She continued to do this until her bag was filled to the brim, and from that house alone. The residents wouldn't even notice they were gone. She then ran down to where the "lower lives" were. Silently, she placed a small back of goods into each of the houses and left.

The next morning, the people were rejoicing. They thought that it was a sign of good fortune, that the gods were silently watching over them ands had seen there struggles. A little boy talked of a beautiful lady with blue hair, and described her for everyone.

"I saw her come in through my window. I was pretending to be sleeping." he stated, telling the story to everyone gleefully.

The people smiled at him, and threw a celebration. They knew that the rich folks would never dare to venture to their little community, thinking that they would catch a disease. In all of their excitement, the decided to build a statue of their saviour, not knowing that she stood there watching them from above.

"That was a nice thing you did."

She nearly jumped out of her skin. Turning to the voice, she glared at Ace as he smiled down at the village from on top of one of its houses.

"Yeah, and what of it?" she asked.

"Nothing," he stated, that smile never leaving his face, "I went to buy a few things this morning before I followed you here. I should be leaving very soon."

"And how does this concern me?" She asked again, trying to sound bored, but Ace saw the curious glint in her eyes.

"I just wanted to let you know in case you missed me."

" ** _Miss you_** " she laughed, "I'm practically jumping out of my seat at the thought of you gone. You haven't been here a day yet and you're a nuisance."

Shaking his head Ace turned his attention away from the village and onto her, "You know, it okay to let people in. You don't have to act all tough all the time. That's something my brothers taught me."

She stayed silent as he got up, preparing to leave again.

"Cheshire." she said softly.

"Pardon?"

"Blue D. Cheshire. That's my name."

"Well then," Ace began with his signature smile, "My name is Portgas D. Ace, and it's been a pleasure."

 ** _A/N: Boom, there you have it. The first chappie. I'm so excited for this. Incase you guys didn't notice, this was from when Ace first began his adventure. He should be 17, and I think our dear heiress should be about 15. At first, I was going to make it so Ace would ask her to be apart of his crew, but I decided against it... for this chapter at least. That doesn't mean that she will accept it though. Antyway, see you guys in the next chapter. I appreciate every single one of you readers._**

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 ** _Follow!_**

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 ** _~XoX,_**

 ** _Crystalline Amore_**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2:**

"Cap'n!" one of the crew mates yelled, trying to gain their captains attention.

Before he even knew it, I rolled up newspaper came slamming down on top of his sleeping head, knocking his hat off of his head and into his lap. Ace glared at his first mate, but it was slowly replaced by a happy from as he stared at the bounties before him.

"25 million beri!" He exclaimed, pointing to his own bounty.

The overzealous captain continued looking, reading off the bounties of everyone on his crew. Just as he read the last one, another bounty caught his attention. Curiously, a few of his crew mates looked over Ace's shoulder to take a glimpse of what had made their captain stop in his celebration.

"Well, ain't she a beaut." one the the shipwrights whistled.

Soft freckles danced across pale peach skin, and small dimples could be seen from her sadistic smile. Her lips were round and plump; ruby red and her eyes were wide and the color of the darkest depth of the sea. She had a delicate finger on her lip, with a malicious glint in her eyes. Her hair was thick, long and wavy, with a range of blues dancing around as her locks. At the top of her bounty, the word "Thief" was written in large fronts, and under her picture "Wanted Dead or Alive, Mistress of Deception, Blue D. Cheshire."

Ace's grin widened, before he pointed at the picture, holding it up for this crew members to see. Many of them whistled and howled, but immediately stopped with a glare from their captain.

"This is the girl I told you all about, the one who stole money from a town of Celestial Dragons and Nobles to give to the poor."

"Is that the same one who decided too put down the shingles first, and nail a wooden plank down diagonally?" asked the first mate.

"Yup."

"You never said she was this cute." one crew member stated.

"She's like the same age as my little brother." Ace stated, eyes showing disgust, "Besides, that was a few months ago. Her last reported sighting is on Dongoi Island."

"Isn't that where we're going?" the navigator stated, brushing a hand through his auburn hair.

"Maybe you'll meet up with her." slurred the old cook, winking suggestively at their captain.

 _'Damn pesky marines,' she swore under her breath, jumping from roof to roof. She jumped down and swivelled into a dark corner as she heard footsteps run past her and blue clad figures run by._

She had been trying to leave the island for weeks now, but was always interrupted by marines, ignorant pirates that wanted her on their crew or for her treasures, bounty hunters or even sea kings and bad weather. It was like everything tried to keep her on this island for some strange reason. Cheshire had been here for almost a month now, and as the weeks went by she became more impatient and anxious. There was a whole world out there, one which she couldn't even see since she can't even leave the island.

Heading in the direction of the forest, she scourged the area for food and predators, before finally finding a reasonable place to sleep. Her makeshift bed as mad of large leaves and cotton; the most comfortable things she could find.

 _'Ever since I got that bounty, my life has been a mess. Although running for your life can be so exciting, I miss my little cottage_.' she thought, staring at the sky, _'I wonder how that little village I helped there is.'_

She rolled over, staring into the burning red and orange embers of the small fire she made to provide heat for herself.

 _'I wonder how that boy's doing... what was his name?... Archie?... No, that's too long, his name was like three letters...'_

"...Captain!"

She jolted upright immediately, hurriedly putting out the fire and grabbing her belongings. As the footsteps came closer, she made her way into the darkest piece of the forest, and his behind a tree where she could monitor the people entering her camping grounds.

"Looks like there was someone here, recently too." A tall person with light brown hair in a man bun stated, long scar going from his cheek to the left corner of his mouth.

"Yeah, and they left in a hurry." A raven haired man with a scraggly beard stated.

 _'Pirates.'_ she hissed in her mind, eyes turning to slits as she glared from her spot.

She stood as still as can be, and pressed into the bark of the tree, not wanting to fight. She was sure she could take on two people, but if it could be avoided, she would. Just as she thought the prospect of danger was gone, Cheshire felt something breathing down her neck.

"What do we have here?"

She felt something shift in the atmosphere. Drawing all of the water vapour she could muster, she made it form a whip, and slashed it against the unsuspecting persons chest. She jumped to dodge a bullet that had been aimed at her from one of the other pirates, and kicked another in their stomach. Just as she was about to send another attack at the trio, she heard leaves rustling, and felt a familiar presence.

"Stop!"

The trio lowered their weapons, but glared at the woman. Cheshire didn't take her eyes off of them, but she didn't lower her guard at the human behind her either.

"It's okay," she heard, "They won't hurt you Ches."

At that point she knew who that person was, even before they stepped out in front of her.

"Ace."

She could feel that wide smile of his without even meeting his gaze.

"Cheshire."


	3. Chapter 3

**_A/N:Guess who's back again? That's right, Cheshire. I really hope everyone is enjoying the story thus far and I appreciate all the nice comments, follows and favorites. Imma keep this short and just get into the story. Follow/Favorite, Review and boom!!!_** **Chapter 3:**

For what felt like an eternity, they stared at each other, neither saying a word. The tension in the air was high, as were the looks of surprise of his water -chained crew mates and the girl herself.

"Ace?"

Her voice was soft and trembling a bit. She honestly didn't think that she would be seeing him outside of the newspapers anytime soon. The world was a big place and what were the chances of actually seeing someone twice? Just as quick as it came, her shocked expression left, replaced with an angered look as she slapped him hard.

"You ate me out of a house and home you bastard," she yelled angrily, "And you spilled food on my brand new carpet when you fell asleep. It took me weeks to get that shit out!"

Ace chuckled, scratching the back of his head as he did so. ' _She_ didn't change at all.' he thought to himself.

"I don't mean to interrupt this heartfelt union," came the brunette who was chained to the tree upsidedown, "But can you please take us down?"

With a wave of her finger, the pirates were released and began stretching their limbs.

"Damn, you sure can hit girlie." another muttered, rubbing his sore arms.

"Yeah, when did you get that devil fruit ability?" Ace asked, "I don't remember you having it when I last saw you..." he paused, "...Unless you never showed it."

"Wow, you've gotten better at reading me since the last time we've met." Cheshire stated with a smug look on her face, "Must be because this new pirate status has brought about more women."

"Is that jealousy I hear?"

"Jealousy? Who am I supposed to be jealous of? You or the women?"

She laughed a little, clutching her gut as she did so. It was a soft, velvety sound, with a rugged edge like she didn't do it a lot. All of a sudden, the hair at the base of her neck began to stand up.

"A group of Marines are coming this way." She states the same time as another one of Ace's crew.

"Head back to the ship." Ace ordered before turning to Cheshire as they were about to run away, "Coming?"

"Let's see if you boys can keep up Mr. Pirate."

*

*

*

Ace stared into the darkness of the ocean as he and his crew sailed away from the island. Luckily, they avoided confrontation with any Marines, but they would need to stock up at the nearest island.

"Can't sleep?" he heard behind him.

He didn't even need to turn around to know who it was, so he wasn't surprised to see long blue tresses swaying in the breeze from his peripheral vision.

"No, what about you?"

"Nah," she admitted honestly, rubbing her arms to keep herself warm, "I find it hard to sleep in unknown places, at least until I can relax or pass out from exhaustion."

"Sounds like you've done this a lot."

"Seems like you've got a lot on your mind."

"And what if I do?" Ace asked, finally turning his head and looking at her.

"Then sometimes it's best to talk about it. I read that in one of my mom's books." She turned to face him as well, blue locks hanging over the ship rails as she did so, "So is this one of those times?"

"My brother Sabo's birthday is coming up."

"You have a brother?"

"Two actually. Both are younger than me. Only Luffy's alive."

"Oh."

"Yeah. He died because of a Celestial Dragon. They blew up his ship while he was on it, then ran over it with their yacht."

"Oh."

"Is that all you're gonna say?"

"Is there anything you want me to say?"

"No, not specifically."

"Then I won't say anything then."

There was a moment of silence after that, like they were both giving their respects to the dead.

"We all had a dream to become pirates, and promised that we'd all leave the island when we're seventeen. Luffy's about your age, so he'll be leaving soon." Ace chuckled, "Funny how we were all competing to be pirate king."

Cheshire gave a low whistle, "Big dreams, to be pirate king you'd have to do a lot of big things, and be strong enough to do it to."

"Yeah, that's why I'm gonna take the head of Whitebeard."

Cheshire nearly choked on her own saliva, eyes widening as she stared at Ace as if he had grown a tail on the back of his neck.

"Are you crazy? He's the strongest man alive! How the hell do you plan on doing that?"

"I'm not going to do it now, but soon, he's gonna pop up in the newspapers again. That's when I'm gonna go after him."

"Does your crew know about this?"

"Yeah."

Running a hand through her hair to massage her scalp, Cheshire sighed, "If that's what you wanna do, then go ahead." She then turned and yawned, "I'm gonna try to catch some sleep."

"Cheshire." Ace called.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for the talk."

"Welcome." she giggled.

"And Cheshire?"

"What?"

"Good job switching the topic back there."

"Its my job. Thieves like me gatta have a silver tongue."

"Night Cheshire."

"Night Mr. Pirate."

"That's not my name."

She could feel the smile in his voice without even turning around.

"I know."

 ** _A/N: This chapter is done, but hopefully I'll be able to update soon. Follow/Favorite and Review. Thanks for the read guys... and gals._** ** _~XOXO_** ** _C.A._**


	4. Chapter 4

**_A/N: Imma make this authors note short, sweet and simple, so be sure to check the one at the end of this chappie.._**

 **Chapter 4:**

 _Boom!_

 _She jolted awake. Her once peaceful and quiet home was ruined by the apparent war outside of her bedroom walls. She was too afraid move, and prayed that this was some kind of distorted dream; a nightmare. Her mother came charging into her room, followed closely by her older brothers, weapons in their hands. Her mother carried a medium size chest in her hand. It was made of oak, and was light. It was perfect for the young girl to carry in her backpack._

 _"Come on sweety, we have to go." Her mother said gently, yet firmly._

 _They knew that this day was coming. They knew that one day someone would try to steal their experiment, but they never expected it to be the ones who swore to protect them. Perhaps they finally found out that they were being double crossed._ _The little girl got up, and they ran to the secret passageway that was created in case something like this occured. Tears threatened to fall as she ran as fast as her little legs could carry her. The screams of innocent men, women and children were carried in the wind, even underground. It was all because of these damn fruits. It was all because of power._.

.

.

Cheshire sat up, streching her limbs like a cat and yawning. She had finally fallen asleep after talking with Ace. He had a very calming aura about him that lured her in, like that of an older brother or father.

After freshening up, she grabbed her backpack and took out a large map. It was obviously a treasure map, but the treasure would be hard to find. There was no "X". In fact, there was nothing on the map. It was like an old, dirty piece of oversized printing paper.

She took a handful of ashes, the black of it staining her hands, and blew it onto the paper. It was like magic. The once blank map began to fill, and soon an outline of an island could be seen. She continued to rub charcoal onto the map until the map was bisible enough to comprehend. A large X sat in the middle of the skull shaped island.

"Perfect." she purred, her wide grin becoming evident.

There was a not at the door, but she knew who it was before he even spoke. Ace was the only one on the ship that spoke to her. Everyone else was wary about a thief being onboard, and a female at that. Besides, their captain ordered them not to get to close to her.

"Come in Ace." she stated, packing everything up.

As he walked in, Ace couldnt help but to become curious. What was she doing before he walked in? Ashes dusted the floor and stained her fingertips.

"What were you doing just now?" he asked curiously.

"Curiosity killed the cat, you know." she said simply, hooking the strap on her bag shut.

"Aww, I thought we were friends," Ace whined, hooking an arm iverbher shoulder, "I wont tell anyone."

Cheshire laughed, her eyes twinkling mischiveously.

"You're cute." She whispered into his ear before walking out of the door, "And incase you forgot, I still dislike pirates with a passion."

"Yet you're on a boat with 'em."

"It was either you or the Marines, and I could stand the sight of you lot over those hypocritical sea scums."

"So I take it you have history with them."

"You could say that."

"So is that why you steal? To get back at them."

"In a way, but it's so much deeper than that."

"Can you explain that to me?"

"Can I? Sure." Cheshire started, causing Ace to grin widely, "Will I? I don't know yet."

Although a bit disappointed, his smile did not falter, "So you will one day."

Cheshire rubbed her temples, and rolled her eyes. Never before had she met someone so persistent. She had no idea whether to feel annoyed or flattered.

"Maybe." she stated as they arrived onto the deck of the ship. Her bag was slung lazily across her shoulder as she learned against the wall.

"I don't even know if I'll ever see you again." she stated honestly, causing Ace to rub the back of his head sheepishly.

"Well, sure we will. I don't know why you're always so cryptic, Ches. "

"This is just how things have to be. I'm involved with dangerous people, and I could die any day. You could be executed any day, and even if we live, this world is such a big place. You could be in the Grandline and I could be in East Blue."

"Then let's make a deal." Ace said seriously, "If you and I meet up again, you'll answer my questions. "

"Sure. " Cheshire said after a moment of silence.

She began walking towards the bow of the boat, Ace closely following behind.

"Are you sure you don't wanna wait until we dock?"He questioned, "Where are you even gonna go?"

She shrugged nonchalantly, hopping onto the figurehead as her body slowly became a blue mist.

"Wherever the ocean takes me."

She left with a Cheshire grin, wholeheartedly believing she would never see Ace again...

... Oh how wrong was she.

 ** _A/N: I know this is a little short, but as I am posting this, I have full intentions of completing another few chapters and posting it to make up for the wait. Thank you so much to everyone that has reviewed, favorited and followed. I really appreciate it and I hope this story is to everyone's liking._** ** _Review!_** ** _Favorite!_** ** _Follow!_** ** _Share!_** ** _Woot, woot. I have decided to make a birthday shout out section... It seems like a fun idea. I know alot of people that were born in June (like my mom, aunt, cousins, godsister, friends, and even myself... My 16th Birthday was June 10th, my moms was on June 16th and my aunts is on the 26th... So... Yeah...). PM me about birthdays and Ill make a birthday shout out if I see em on time._** ** _XOXO,_** ** _Crystalline Amore_**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

One Year Later...

The night was dark, and not a star in sight. The moon's beauty was hidden behind the thick layers of the clouds that formed. The sea was calm, and everything was quiet; a bit too quiet.

A dark haired man was standing on watch this night. His eyes were wide and alert. Suddenly a soft gust of wind blew past him, caressing his tanned skin. It was abnormal. The nearby trees had not moved, neither had the flag that bore the crew's mark. Indeed, this was peculiar.

To the untrained nothing would have seemed out of place, but the scent of an unfamiliar vanilla and ginger lingered in the air, and light nimble footsteps could be heard. Slowly he got up, yawning and stretching like he was preparing for bed. He made his was down the hallway, turning a corner, and then another. Unexpectedly, a fist of fire aimed at the wall, right where the intruder's head had been.

"Oi." A crew member yelled, distracting the young pirate.

It was enough to allow them to escape. They ducked and ran past many of the other unaware and half-awake crew members. The figure turned, heading straight to where all of their loot was. The crew ran after them, but their delay gave the thief ample time to escape.

As everyone entered the room, with weapons in their hand and their devil-fruits prepared, the intruder turned.

"Stop immediately, you are surrounded." shouted one of the shipwrights of the ship.

A light chuckle emitted from the girl. Her lips curled upwards, and as she grinned, dimples formed in her rosy cheeks from under her hood.

"It would seem as if I am." Her voice smooth like velvet.

"Do you know who we are?" Growled one of the crewmen, angry that she was laughing in their faces.

"I would be an idiot if I stole from people I didn't know about."

"And yet you still tried to steal from us." another said, thoroughly intrigued with this mysterious girl.

"Tried?" She laughed louder, making them even angrier, "No, no sweetie pie, I _am_ going to steal from you, quite successfully too."

Before anyone could react, she became a blue mist that covered the room until only the Cheshire grin on her cheeks remained. When it vanished, she had, as well as everything in the room.

"What the hell happened just now?" asked a very angry, but slightly intrigue pirate ask as he stormed out of the room to see if he could spot the girl.

Everyone followed behind him, wanting not only their loot, but to make sure their crewmate didn't do something stupid. Low and behold, as they made their way onto the deck, not a soul could be seen.

"Shit," one growled, "How are we gonna explain this to the captain?"

.

.

.

The moment they sww the remainder of their crew dash down with angered looks on their faces, they knew something was wrong. These were the few that decided to stay back to restock before joining them, but they took longer than usual, and were extremely pissed off.

"Is something wrong?" one crew asked, gaining the attention of the others that werent too drunk.

"Some chick stole all of our loot." Another growled, drawing his swords, "I say we hunt the wench down."

"What?" everyone shrieked.

They were the most formidable pirates on the sea. Who in their right minds would even _try_ to steal from them?

"What did she look like?" Thatch asked, causing some to roll their eyes.

"Long blue hair, pale skin..."

At this instant, the former Spade Pirates' eyes widened. All of them thought of one specific girl, and as their crewmate continued to describe her, the possibility of them being the same person grew.

"...And she left in this wierd blue mist thing."

Instantly, Ace cackled loudly, drawing the attention of his brothers.

"What's so funny, kid. This was your loot too."

"It's nothing, it's just I didnt think she would be so bold."

"You know this girl, son?" Whitebeard ask.

"Yeah, Ches couldn't hurt a soul. She probably just stole it to prank me or something. It will be back in the morning."

Thatch rubbed his chin in thought, "So we have nothing to worry about."

"Nope."

Marco looked at the other Spades Pirates for confirmation, but they all had mised reactions.

"I mean, she andd Cap'n are real close and she never stole from us per say..." one started.

"...Yeah, but she's a thief..."

"...And there was this one time she pinned us to a tree."

Ace glared at his crew, causing them to shut up instantly before turning his attention to his captain.

"If she doesn't, I'll personally find her." he stated with such conviction in his voice.

Whitebeard rubbed his chin in thought, "Alright, but even if she does, I want to meet this brat you speak so highly of."

Ace smiled.

"Sure thing, Pops."

.

.

.

"And here I thought the 'World's Strongest Man' would have the world's strongest security." Cheshire said running a hand through her hair.

It was way too easy to steal from the pirates, and even though they had a fast reaction time to being under attack, it wasn't as quick as she would have expected.

'Perhaps these were some of the newbies.' she thought.

Her room was filled to the brim with gold coins, and it was a bit annoying to an extent. Everywhere she turned, there was gold, jewels and treasure; even in the bathtub.

"I'll have to carry this crap back." she stated a bit irritated, before smirking at a bounty poster on her wall, "I guess we met again after all..."


	6. Chapter 6

**_A/N: Hey everyone... Yes... This is another chapter... I am on a roll. Pray_** **for me my fellow Homo sapiens... And other beings. Report Card Day is near. Anyway, heres the chappie. I hope you enjoy it...**

 **Chapter 6**

She gracefully walked across the deck, blue mist surrounding the entire ship. She hoped over the knocked out bodies of the drunk crewmates, and gently smiled at them. Never before had she seen such a closely knitted group of people, nevertheless pirates.

As she made her way to the storage unit of the ship, her most began to spread, dropping large bags of loot into the compartment. She never knew how annoying so much treasure could be until she stole all of the Whitebeards'.

"So he was right, yoi." She heard from behind her.

Cheshire turned, her blue hair swaying around her. Before her stood a blonde man that she had only seen in picture, but it was easy to see that it was indeed him.

"Marco The Pheonix," Cheshire stated, folding her arms, "Can't say I expected you to talk to me so idly."

"Because you're a thief, yoi?"

"Partially, " she began, walking around him and eyeing him up and down, "But mainly because of what you Whitebeard pirates did... Or didn't do."

Marco raised and eyebrow, obviously confused and wanted the girl to elaborate more.

"Nothing. If you don't know, I don't know either. " Cheshire spat venomously. She then turned to scan the area, "So where would my most tolerable pirate be?"

Once again Marco raised an eyebrow, "You mean Ace, yoi? Second door to the left on the first floor. "

"Thanks, Pineapple Head." she stated walking off.

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Ace gently scored in his sleep as he laid on his back, limbs spread widely on the bed. He then turned over, cuddling the warmth next to him. Even in his sleep he admired the familiar scent. Was it vanilla? Ginger? Both? After a brief moment, he came to his senses. He didn't fall asleep with anyone. Opening his eyes, be saw familiar blue tresses laying across his arm, their owner in a deep, peaceful sleep.

"Cheshire?" he muttered sleepily.

She pried one eye open, hearing slightly at the man.

"Shh, I'm trying to sleep and you're making this hard for me." she grumbled, snuggling closer, "You're really warm."

Not knowing what to do, he froze a bit, feeling his face getting warm. Her hair was tickling his chest and arms, and even she could feel how tense his muscles were.

"Relax Ace," she said groggily, "You're a pirate, I know for sure that you've had tons of women in your bed."

This didn't do anything to make him relax, especially when she turned, her chest rubbing against his forearms and her backside touching his pelvis area. She had grown since that last time they saw eachother. Her curves were larger, her hair was longer, but she still had those mischievous eyes.

Luckily and unluckily for Ace, the door to his room slammed open. His brothers dashed into the room, wide smiles on their faces.

"Ace, you were right she brought back our-" Thatch paused, taking in the scene before him, "-What's going on here?"

Immediately, the remainder of his brothers stuck their head into the door. After examining the situation, wide grins would spread across their faces, and loud chatter soon followed.

"Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck, " Cheshire moaned, sitting up, causing the stop of her shirt to fall on her shoulder and the hem of her shirt to rise above her stomach, "I'm up, I'm up, I'm up. Can't a girl catch a break?"

Yawning, she got out of bed and threw on her boots and sat on Ace's bed as he tried to calm down his brothers. All of them had the wrong idea of what was happening in their head, and he needed to clarify things before they got too out of hand.

"So are you not going introduce us to this dear lady, Ace?" Haruta asked, fanning himself.

"I'm Cheshire." she stated, swiveling around Ace to take a look at his brothers, "Nice bunch of pirates you've got here, Ace."

Ace shook his head, "Still hate pirates I see."

This resulted in various reactions from the other pirates.

"Well I don't like thieves."

"Why?"

"I don't care. We're great."

"She's just jealous."

"If you don't like us then why are you here?"

Ignoring them, she shook her head, "Nope. Hate is a strong word. I merely dislike them with a passion. I hate Marines."

A loud laugh echoed throughout the halls of the ship, all of them turned to see their captain standing there, watching their reaction with a bit more of the crew behind him looking curiously.

"I like you brat. Join us." he laughed.

"What?!"

 ** _A/N: Woot!! Another chapter is done. I have alot of ideas running through my head, so if laziness, procrastination and time don't work against me, atleast one or two chapters should be out daily. My family and I plan on going on vacation, and I wanna have a summer job so hopefully I will continue to update because September will be an extremely busy month for me... Maybe even the entire school semester. Anyway, thank you so much for reading._**

 ** _Follow_**

 ** _Favorite_**

 ** _Review_**

 ** _Share_**

 ** _XOXO,_**

 ** _(My love is very special...Lol)_**

 ** _Crystalline Amore_**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter** **7**

Cheshire raised a delicate eyebrow at the pirate captain.

 _'Is he crazy?'_ she wondered, _'I swear someone mentioned my dislike for pirates just a moment ago... Oh yeah, that was me.'_ She paused, taking in the shocked expressions of the crew around her. Many of them were having a fit. It would be almost 20 years since the last female came aboard the ship to live. _'Then again, pirates are usually crazy. Especially their captains. Their first mates are usually the level headed ones.'_ She turned to Marco, pointing her finger at him.

"Oi, you." She called, gaining his attention, "You're the first mate, so you should be more rational than your captain." She paused. "Well as rational as a person in your profession can be."

Many of the crew laughed a bit, before turning in anger as they realised the underlying insult beneath her words.

"I'm not gonna stand here and pretend that I'm going to wholeheartedly join your crew, but I will..." she paused as she was interrupted by the crew's uproars of mixed emotions. Some were excited, pleased, or happy, while others were a bit hesitant at allowing a thief aboard the ship. "...on several conditions." She continued, "First of all, I want my own room. The only other females here are nurses, so they don't really count, and there should be enough room for one more person. Secondly, I am allowed to have my secrets. As long as it won't hurt the crew in the long run, you don't need to know. Thirdly, there's will be no questions or experiments on my devil fruit abilities. It should also be mentioned that I am in an alliance with many dangerous people. One of these people will send me on missions from time to time, and sometimes I have to report information. This will not affect my loyalty to this crew, but at the same time if you were to ask for information on them, I wouldn't be able to tell you. If a war has started, and I have to choose a side, I will choose neither and become completely neutral. Fourthly..." Cheshire was one again cut off by someone.

"How do we know that we can trust you, then?" they asked.

"Yeah, and don't you think this is a lot of conditions?" another asked.

"Too bad. If your captain trusts me, then you will have to abide by his orders and do so as well, especially if I become a crew member."

"If?" Whitebeard asked.

"Yes, if. That brings me to my fourth condition." She stated, now looking at the captain, "I will only join you if you prove your worth to me. Like I said, I am in cahoots with dangerous people, and if I was able to come onboard with no troubles, even if you are the strongest alive, you will die."

"But that was only because no many was onboard."

"Yeah, and we weren't expecting anything. We are the strongest beings on the sea, who would attack us?"

Evidently these were the newbies that were left behind that night talking. Cheshire walkers over to them, her blue eyes tearing holes into their pupils.

"That is exactly why people will attack you, because you are the strongest. Pirates want to claim your title, Marines want to end your reign, Bounty Hunters want to steal your glory, and Thieves like me want to grab your loot and live lavishly with it." Cheshire stated, "That's why I want the crew to find me by sunset. The minute the moon rises, your time is up and I will not join your crew. Commanders and the captain are not allowed. I want to see the strength of the crew without them hiding behind their commanders and a title."

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"You had big talk for a girl that needs my help." Ace smirked.

Cheshire laid sprawled out amongst branches far above where Ace stood, trapped in the arms of a tree. She feared fading out as the branches may move with her, accidentally hitting an important organ if she was not careful. To make matters worst, considering she's spent half of the day running around, avoiding the Whitebeard Pirates, she was running low on energy and this made using her powers more dangerous and painful.

"Will you help me down or not?" she barked or in embarrassment.

"Depends." Ace began.

"On what?"

"Will you join the Whitebeard Pirates?" Ace asked, a wide grin on his face.

Even in her predicament, she couldn't go herself and laughed. The man before her only could be a miracle worker. She still has yet to find another human being, nevertheless a male, that has made her laugh like that.

"Yes," she begun, "But if anyone asks, you caught me when my powers started to malfunction. Technically that is not as lie."

Ace chuckled as he used his fire to boost him up there tree, careful not to catch anything ablaze.

"You really are something, huh, Ches."

"Wouldn't be something I want told before." she laughed before her voice softened as Ace moved the first branch, feeling his warm bath on her ear as he worked, "Although that's the first time it's ever been a compliment."


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

 _Sex, such a complicated and unique activity. It seemed to complicate the most intricate and strict relationships, and no one was safe from the desired that came with it. Lust was one of these things. It was often confused for love and vice versa, and as she lied naked next to the man that has tormented her bed sheets and gave her heart a distinct ache at the thought of him for these past few months, she wondered whether this was love or lust. He was dangerous. She was dangerous. Their entire relationship was dangerous, but not to the toxic level. He went against everything she stood for, and as she traced patterns onto his sun kissed skin and fingered his golden blonde tresses, she couldn't help but think that she would shatter her beliefs again at the thought of being with him. However, like usual, one of them had to leave. This time it was her._

 _"Stay with me, even if it's only five more minutes." he breathed into her hair tenderly, seemingly forgetting that this was the forth time he begged her to stay. Five minutes quickly became twenty._

 _"I can't." she said back, fighting her tears, "You know what will happen if we are seen together."_

 _"Please." he begged, like her leaving would be like the breath leaving his chest. "Nothing is gonna happen. I'm not going anywhere when you wake up."_

 _She sighed, giving into his temptations. She would do anything for the man before her, but would be so the same? The world was cruel to people like him, and hardened their hearts to people like her for fattest for people like him._

 _"Are you sure?" she asked, "If I stay, you'll be here in the morning."_

 _"Positive."_

 _It was at the moment she added another rule to her beliefs._

 _ **Never trust pirates. They always lie.**_

 _In the morning, he was long gone, and the memory of the night they shared was forever etched in her head. But for a heart that has been broken, hers never darkened or turned to ice. She still foolishly loved that man, and even bore the children of their union that night. However, she stood strong to her new belief, until she saw his face and was serenaded with his hands and words once more._

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Cheshire stretched her arms, cracking her bones a little as she did so. Next to her lied a tuff of black hair, snoring lightly, his back facing her. She got out of bed and tiptoed to put on her boots. Before she left, she couldn't help but to smile and place a soft kiss on his forehead.

 _'He looks so cute.'_ she thought to herself before leaving.

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As Thatch made his way to the kitchen to begin prepping for this mornings breakfast rush, he realised someone was already in the kitchen. Between the smell of brewing coffee, chopped vegetables and cooking meats, he began to wonder who was cooking in his kitchen. Everyone knew that this was his domain.

"Mornin." came Cheshire's upbeat greeting.

"Good morning," he began a bit hesitantly, "What are you doing in here?"

"Making breakfast." she stated as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, "Thought I'd save you the trouble of doing it by yourself."

She then picked up a thick binder with Thatch's handwriting on it.

"These are all of the food allergies, dislikes and favorite foods of all of the crew, correct?" she asked.

Thatch nodded.

"Well sit down." she stated, "Today's your day off."

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When everyone made their way into the mess hall, they couldn't help but salivate at the smell of the delicious food. Thatch had really outdone himself today. However, when they noticed that he himself was sitting down, laughing with Cheshire who stood behind the stive plating food, they were heavily surprised.

"And then he fell asleep, face first into the plate of stew, which stained my carpet." she laughed.

"Yeah, that sounds like our Ace alright." Thatch grinned, before noticing everyone had began to trickle in. "Do you need help serving everyone?" he asked. Usually the nurses helped him serve when they went to give Pops his food and medicine.

"Nah, I got it." she stated, summoning water tendrils that scooped up there plates and rested them in front of their respective owners.

Although many had seen her powers, the Commanders and some others were stunned to see her power over water, being their first time to see such a thing. Soon, everyone had a plate before them, and had begun eating.

"Where's my food, yoi?" Marco asked.

"Oops, silly me. Must have forgotten to give you it." Cheshire stated almost too innocently as she personally delivered his plate, "Eat up."

And with that, she turned to sit with Ace, her signature smile adorning her face.

"You didn't do anything to his food, right?" Ace asked, raising a suspicious eyebrow at his friend.

"Nope." she stated mischiveously, "But I want him to think that I did. Just look at him."

Indeed, Marco was hesitant to eat, but eventually did much to Cheshire's dismay. He smirked at her once he caught her glaring at him.

"This is really good, yoi." he said honestly, a be small smile on his face.

He was trying to be civil with the girl, wanting to move past her obvious dislike for him.

"I don't need your approval." she growled before mockingly adding a "yoi."

Marco rolled his eyes at the teen, to transfixed on the angered look on her face. It reminded him on someone he previously knew, but he couldn't place a finger on who.


	9. Chapter 9

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 _"Mama?" a little girl yawned, rubbing her eyes._

 _She had been woken up from a nightmare, and thought that a warm class of milk would soothe her problems when she heard sniffling. It couldn't be her brothers. Even when they thought everyone was asleep, they would never cry so publicly. It was something that her mother had taught her children her especially, considering she was there only girl. She said that she should never let anyone see her cry because no one is blessed enough to see her tears. She said that although it's ok for her brothers to cry and show emotion, only special people should have the privilege of seeing such a thing. Her mama was a great mama, but sometimes she broke down. Sometimes the weight on her shoulders got so heavy and she didn't know what to do with it. Some nights the little girl would watch her mama cry over a picture of the man who made her like this when she thought no one saw her. She always saw her, and always tried to relieve that burden from her shoulders. She got good grades at school, did extra chores, and never talked back. She tried her hardest, but it was never good enough. Tonight she had had enough of it._

 _"Why do you always cry over that man, Mama? Who is he?"_

 _A bit startled, the mother hurriedly wiped her tears._

 _"He's nobody."_

 _"Then why do you always cry over him? Is he dead?"_

 _Her mother paled at the thought of it and shook her head._

 _"Then I hated him. He's always making you cry and I don't like that. You said that only special people should see you cry. Does that mean you love him? If you love him why does he make you cry so much?"_

 _Her Mother smiled and picked her up, placing her daughter into her lap and gently kissing her forehead._

 _"Sometimes that's just how love works. It hurts, but the happiness that comes with it is worth it. You can't help who you fall in love with, and I can't just fall out of love so soon. When you love someone you just have to set them free no matter how much it hurts."_

 _"Love doesn't make much sense. I'm never gonna fall in love." the little girl said with assurance._

 _Her mother chuckled again, ruffling her curly blonde hair._

 _"We'll have to see about that, now won't we."_

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 _Punch, kick, kick, punch..._

She continued to repeat this in hear her head and she worked out. Her black sports bra and blue camouflaged leggings never seemed to become drenched in the sweat that poured down her forehead however. She could feel eyes watching her though, and it wasn't a feeling that she enjoyed. She enjoyed being that predator, but grew uncomfortable at the thought of being preyed upon. Ironically, that was the life she lived, being the convict she was.

"What do you want?" she growled, taking a long swig from her water bottle.

Marco jumped down from his place on the crow'snest. He had been rather curious about the girl that has gained the attention of his Captain long before they even knew of her dominance over water. They simply thought she was a one trick pony at first, only being able to conceal and take things in her mist, but had they been wrong. Was that the reason Whitebeard wanted her onboard? Did they want her onboard because of her strength? Or perhaps their Pops knew more about the girl than he lead on.

"Just wanted to check in on the new crewmate, yoi."

He instantly scolded himself for saying such a thing. They had tons of crewmates everyday as Pops wasn't one to turn down those that came to him. Cheshire instantly pointed this out as she tired her hair in a messy bun.

"Well this is the first time Pops has allowed a female onboard in a while, yoi. I just wanted to see what made you so special."

He prayed that he didn't seem like an utter pervert, but from the disgusted look on her face, he could see that she had indeed.

"Look here, lazy eyes." she growled, "The only reason I fully agree is because Pops said he could get me more information on what my mother was studying. I don't know what you dirty old geezers usually do with the women that come into this ship, and truthfully, I don't want to know. I am here for information, an alliance, loyalty, and to explore the ocean more. I will not be a concubine." She paused and looked him up and down, "Especially to the likes of you."

Trying not to be too offended, Marco continued to pry for information using what little information he was just given moments ago.

"Your mother? Who is she, maybe I could tell you some information if I know her, yoi." he stated, causing Cheshire to mentally curse herself for revealing that.

"My mother is a scientist. She was researching devil fruits, and I want to see if there's any information on the ones she was researching."

Marco nodded, and motioned for her to follow him.

"Where are you taking me?"

"The library has two of the four books on devil fruits. Hopefully you'd be able to find what you need in there."

Cheshire nodded, feeling giddy all of a sudden at the thought of uncovering something. When she entered the library, she paused for a minute to allow her eyes to assist to the light differences and made her way to where Marco was. She watched as he unlocked the cabinet where it was and gently slid it over towards her.

The book was just as she had imagined. It was thick, old and slightly dusty, but in good condition altogether. The pages had started to yellow due to age, but the content that they held were as comprehensible as the day it was first created. The cover was made out of authentic leather and gold. The pages themselves were thick and sturdy, with a smooth feel to them.

Cheshire frantically flipped throughout the book, stopping to certain pages as if expecting something to be there, then turning to another. She did this until she arrived to one page in particular.

"Your devil fruit isn't in here." she said simply, "This book was made by those that cultivated the fruits, and knew every one by name and knew all of their properties. Why isn't yours in here?"

"My devil fruit didn't come about until after the Fruit Cultivators were wiped out, you. Maybe they forgot to put this one on before they died."

It was a smooth lie, she would give him that, but she knew better. Cheshire stared into his eyes, as if she could see all of the sins he had committed in his long life of piracy.

"Your powers." she stated, causing Marco to raise his eyes at her, "Show them to me."

This request wasn't new to him. Many of his brothers in the past had wanted to see the famed blue flames that healed it's wielder. The demanding tone that she used, however, that was different. Very few had ever used such a time with him, even fewer lived to tell the tale. With Cheshire however, the picture of his beloved kept popping into his head, along with the familiar ache that she had left him with.

Cheshire's eyes widened and lit up like a kid in a candy store at the right of the blue colored flames. It caressed Marco's skin, running down his forearm down to his wrist, and then his fingertips in a smooth dance. She reached out to touch it, startling Marco who expected it to hurt her. His flames however, circled her fingers before dying down, his beast purring in his head.

Only once had something like this occurred, and it was so long in the past that he had almost forgotten about it. The image that popped up into his head didn't go away this time, however. Her wide blue hues seemed to haunt him even in his memory.

"Myala." he breathed.

Cheshire snapped her hand away from his, eyes widening as get face visibly paled. Right before his eyes, he watched as red hot anger overtook this expression.

"Never my Mother's name again, bastard." she growled, storming out of the door.

Marco froze. How had he not seen the resemblance before, especially with Cheshire's blue eyes. They were the same. This meant one of two things, and although one of them sat better with him than the other, he didn't like either thought. Either his beloved conceived a daughter for him and never mentioned it, or she we had moved on.

 _"Shit!"_

 ** _A/N: This chapter is the longest one yet. running into about 2,000 words. Sorry for the wait, it would have been posted earlier, but the last time I added more to it, it didn't save, so I needed to add more and have an ending. It's a cliffhanger, but it's an ending. . Antyway._** ** _Review_** ** _Follow_** ** _Favorite_** ** _Share_** ** _XOXO,_** ** _Crystalline Amore_**


	10. Review Replies 1

**_A/N: Hello everyone. Sorry, this is not an update, but I think that you should still read this. There's a little competition somewhere in one of the replies, but you'll have to look to find it. I also answer one or two questions that I think others may want to know about as well, especially if you are a longtime reader of the story. There's also a little foreshadowing Antyway, enjoy!!_**

 **Guest666-69 chapter 1 .Jun 24, 2016**

I'm very curious about this story so please update soon. :)

 ***Crystalline Amore***

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this, I hope you stay curious about this story and continue reading. This will be one time where curiosity didn't kill the cat, but hopefully there is some satisfaction gained at the end of this.

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 **Cheshire chapter 1 .Apr 13, 2016** I love your fanfic. It is amazing. You have to keep writing. I love your characters, the plot, everything. I was really bummed when I found that this was the only chapter. (Btw Cheshire is actually one of my nicknames. Part of why I clicked the story.) Keep up the good work!

 ***Crystalline Amore***

Thank you for reading the story, and I'm sure my _fantastic_ _ability to write a decent summary_ also played a part in you reading this story. * **wink, wink*** And I'm sorry about the long wait before I wrote more of the story. I know it changed a bit from the original, if you read that version of it, but hopefully it has that same appeal that brought many in. Let's look on the bright side though, you have nine delectable chapters to dissect now, with more being written as you read this... maybe.

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 **lost in a field of clovers chapter 1 .Mar 26, 2016** Wow, this is amazing! More please? It's really good!

 ***Crystalline Amore***

Thank you so much!!! I don't know why, but I just got super hyped and excited after reading your comment... Probably because I started to think about food for some reason, I don't know. Thank you for the read and review, and I will continue to do this story for as long as I can.

 **Guest chapter 1 .Mar 19, 2016** What's with the chibi show, it's very different.

 ***Crystalline Amore*** When I first wrote about the chibi show, it was meant to be this fun, exciting place where we got to discuss the plot, character development, what I'm planning on making this story about, and hint about some of the things that would occur, and leave the readers (you) wondering and excited about what would happen next. I can start it back up, but I'm not exactly sure how to reiterate it considering at first, Cheshire was meant to be under a different Jolly Roger.

(First person to guess who's Jolly Roger gets the next chapter emailed to them before I post it.)

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 **AndurilofTolkienchapter 1 .Mar 20, 2016**

nice start

 ***Crystalline Amore***

Nice starts will have a deadly ending. ***wink, wink*** Thank you for the review and read and I hope you continue reading to see the story progress.

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 **Psychedelic Lady Bunnychapter 1 .Mar 19, 2016**

Yeah !

I cant wait ! :D

(It's ophelia of S4 League game ?)

 ***Crystalline Amore***

I think I answered this question, but hi, I'm gonna answer it again! I don't know who Ophelia is. I got this picture from Google images, as many of my fellow writers do (and don't even try to deny it unless you gots dem receipts). I will try to drop my research on Ophelia and maybe even base some things about Cheshire on her.

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 **kobuntanchapter 1 .Mar 19, 2016**

Can't wait to read more~ :)

 ***Crystalline Amore***

I can't wait for you to read more!!! You have no idea how excited and proud I am at how far this story has progressed. It's reviewers like you that truly make me feel inspired and want to continue working on the story. I just get so excited to see everyone's reactions!! Thank you so much!!! I hope you are still enjoying this story.

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 ** _A/N: What?!??! Is that really it?!? It's ok. There will be another one in the next few chapters, so be sure to review if you have any questions so that I can answer them in this thing here. I prefer to do it here's instead of the PM because it takes less time, and it allows the guests to take part as well. Antyway..._**

 ** _Favorite_**

 ** _Follow_**

 ** _Review *wink, wink*_**

 ** _Share!_**

 ** _XOX,_**

 ** _Crystalline Amore_**


	11. Chapter 10

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Cheshire gracefully glided around the ship, finding a way to avoid brushing against the men aboard. Her head was down and treats threatened to fall. Somehow she found Ace. He was exuberantly talking with That, and didn't notice the girl until she was a few feet away.

"Hey Che-" his eyes widened as he took in the stormy look kin her eyes.

It was a surprise to the both of them when she ran into his arms, burying her face in his chest. Thatch raised a brow, and he and the others left the room to give the two a bit of privacy.

"What's wrong?" Ace asked softly.

"I hate him, I have him do much." She breathed.

"Who?"

"Marco."

"I don't understand what's the problem with him. I didn't like him at first but he's not that-"

"-He knocked up my mother and only come back to have sex with her and leave again, not caring about how she would be affected, or about his kids."

"-bad." Ace finished, not knowing what else to say.

After a brief moment of silence, Cheshire wiped her tears, letting go of Ace and sitting on the table.

"Is he your dad?"

Just as she was about to answer, Marco barged in, his eyes frantically looking at Cheshire's face. He rushed over to her, resulting in her stepping back, but holding her ground.

"Cheshire." Marco began.

"I hate you, but I hate you for a reason. You were never there, but most unfortunately, you ruined my mother. I watched her wither into a nearly nonexistent person. Her smile was a fraud, her happiness was a fraud, but all because she feel in love with a fraud."

"I honestly didn't…" he trailed, before sighing, "I loved her back, yoi, I honestly did. I didn't know she had another-"

"-Another what? " She growled, "Another child?! It wouldn't matter, you should've made sure the first two were alright. She died waiting for you, thinking that you'd come."

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 ** _11 Years Ago..._**

 **Cheshire's POV...**

"Goodnight, Mama."

My mother kissed me on my forehead after telling me one of the many stories she memorized. She had a photographic memory, so there was very little that missed her. It was both a blessing and a curse. On one hand it helped her know exactly what was wrong in a situation, and memorized formulas, but on the other hand, she remembered his face, his scent, and noticed every little thing different with his appearance; from the missing buttons on his shirt, to the week old hickey on his collarbone.

"Goodnight, sweetie." She said sweetly, "I love you, my beanstalk."

It was a weird term of endearment, but I found it funny since I was so short. When the other kids teased me about my height, I never felt bad because I knew that I was my family's beanstalk, and my height was adored by them.

"I love you too, Mama."

She kissed my forehead again, switched off the light, and left. I don't think I was asleep for ten minutes, before i heard the shots. They were loud, and as hard as i tried to ignore them, I couldn't. My mother and two older brother rushed into my room, and i instantly knew what was happening. Mother prepared us for situations like this, when the Marines realized she wasn't really on their side, or pirates would try to take away her life's work... or us.

"Sweetheart, we have to run a little faster, ok?"

My mother's voice snapped me or of my thoughts. I could hear the screams if innocent people, feel the heat of the burning down, and taste the blood in the air. It was a massacre, something my young eyes shouldn't have seen.

"Ok." I whispered, before running even faster.

"Do you want me to carry you?"

It was my eldest brother. Both had short blonde hair, but Ryder, my eldest brother had deep blue eyes and his twin, Rouge had Mama's golden-amber ones.

"No, I'm fine." I said with such determination.

We made it to the safe house. It was a small, underground hut that had a month's supply of food, a good size boat, and a stream that lead to ocean. I took my backpack off, and took out a medium sized box, placing it in my mother's hand.

"Here you go, Mama."

She took it, opening it up to reveal three of the four devil fruits she crafted. She placed one in each of our hands.

"Why are you giving these to us?" Rouge asked as he examined the green and copper colored Devil Fruit.

"I made this specifically for you, based on your personality and to offer protection since I'm not going to be around much longer."

Our eyes widened.

"What do you mean you won't be around?" Ryder screeched.

"Mama, you're not leaving us, right?" I questioned, my eyes watering.

"I'm sorry."

She double checked to make sure the food and water crates were safely in the ship, and that no one has followed us here.

"Your coming with us right?" Rouge asked.

"No sweeties. I'm going to stay here to buy you some time. Take care of each other."

My brothers nodded solemnly, and dragged me to the boat, kicking and screaming. As we began to drift further and further away, I feeling my heart shatter watching her.

"We love you, Mama."

"I love you too."


End file.
